Monday, November 8, 2010

It's only November, but there's quite an avalanche storming downhill at Bank of America Stadium these days.

Coach John Fox announced Monday that QB Matt Moore (shoulder) and MLB Dan Connor (hip) would be out the final 8 games of the season, and that LB Thomas Davis (knee) would not return, either, which aborted the attempted comeback Davis wanted to make.

Whew. It's like the Panthers have sustained two 31-point losses in two days -- this is at least as bad as the Saints' 34-3 shellacking of Carolina Sunday (which led to John Fox's extraordinary news conference, which led to this column I wrote).

Given all that news, here are 2 suggestions for the Panthers to make the rest of the season more palatable:

-- At QB, the Panthers say they are going to bring in a veteran as a backup. In the meantime, starting Jimmy Clausen is the most realistic option, but I'd activate Armanti Edwards and have him play some at QB this week at Tampa, too. Why not? He's not doing anything at WR, where Fox obviously doesn't trust him enough to play him -- let the guy try his college position in a limited package.

-- Panthers owner Jerry Richardson should take a page out of Dallas owner Jerry Jones' playbook (the two are good friends, although they deal with the public far differently). Jones publicly apologized for the Cowboys' performance this season not long ago, saying in part: "I'm very, very, very sorry to our fans. You should have better than this."

Richardson should do the same, as well explaining his mysterious vision for this team. It would go a long way toward removing some of the PSL discontent surrounding the franchise, and giving the Panthers something they have very little of right now: hope for the future.

46 comments:

I agree with you about Armanti. He couldn't possibly be any worse than JaMarcus Russell or Joey Harrington.

As for Richardson, your sentiment is noble but it assumes Jones and Richardson are playing the same role - team owner. It is very clear JR is not playing the role of team owner. He is playing the role of Guido, assigned to break the legs of the NFLPA. He is the head man for the group that is bent on breaking the NFLPA and getting a drastically-reduced salary structure so the owners can pocket millions more for themselves. He's not the slightest bit interested in how the Panthers are doing.

Oh, yeah, and if Guido and his band of goons succeeds, you can bet your last dollar that the first thing JR will do is ask Charlotte and Mecklenburg for a publicly-funded stadium.

Since the Panthers are 17th out of 32 teams in player salaries paid out to a sorry bunch why should Richardson apologize for anything?

Put pads and uniforms on the cheerleaders or call up a high school team. How about Mallard Creek since the Observer now calls them the best high school football team in world history for running up scores and even the school brags about being as good as D1A. Funny as hell.

Armanti can't play his college position for one simple reason: he's not facing his college opposition! There are no Citadels and Chattanoogas in the NFL. He can't throw over 5-11, 230-pound linemen up here. He can't throw to receivers who are wide open simply because they're a different class of athlete from the men covering them. Congrats for winning all those second-rate championships, Appers, but it really doesn't mean anything until you prove yourselves week-in and week-out against quality competition.

2:57, that fact is skewed at best. Much of that is the so-called "dead money" to players who aren't here anymore, like Kemoeatu, Lewis, Delhomme, and Diggs. In terms of the 53-man roster, we have the LOWEST payroll in the league, well behind Tampa, who's actually succeeding with TALENTED young players.

I definitely think we need to give Armanti some time at QB. We need a few passing plays for him along with what he could do out of the wildcat formation. If he is in the game the opposing team cannot assume it is a running play from the wildcat. He has a good arm and was very accurate in college.

Thats really grandeoise logic. So highly acclaimed mega million billionaires of the top 1%successes are the ones who dont get it? Its the little brokedick dog pizzantz who know it all? LOL. No wonder they got where they are and you mofoz on the bottom lower than a snake azz.

Get real. You dont know squat.

Iacoca said lead follow or get the hell out of the way. You part of the solution or part of the problem.

Let's see... Joe Flacco, the starting QB for Baltimore played for Delaware and if my memory is correct they were defeated by Appalachian State with Armanti Edwards in the 2007 FCS Championship game 49 - 21. Joe seems to be doing OK against this caliber of defense. Just saying...

let me break it down for you- the kitty cats want the taxpayers to gift them with another prime piece of uptown real estate, incentives, yadda yadda, so they can build another pleasure palace in a few years. Piss off the PSL owners and the general public with continued mediocrity for the next few years and they'll be lucky if we give them so much as a litter box to play in...

I now wish Vick would have come to Carolina. I was a little uneasy when he said last season that he wanted to play for Carolina - or was it before he signed with Philly?

This is just embarrassing to watch on Sunday's. Can I just get a blackout now to not sit with my TV on Fox hoping for a miracle?

I'm putting this blame on Richardson....90% of it, maybe 99%. He let 12 veterans walk. He didn't renew Fox's contract. Fox has some blame of course. The thing is Fox has gone to 1 Super Bowl, 2 NFC Championships, and never had a worse record than 7-9.

Mr. Richardson - you need to come out and restore faith in this franchise with it's fans. You need to apologize for the product you've allowed to be put on the field.

LOL...you guys have one name and you think you're making a point. How about some other I-AA studs? Tarvaris Jackson, 2nd-rounder: flopRhett Bomar, 2nd-rounder: flopJosh Johnson: flopIngle Martin: flopAndy Hall: flopEdwards is a Saturday player, and a great one. But he ain't gonna succeed in the NFL. Try Canada. He can compete with other Saturday studs like Chris Leak.

Hey Michael P. I think what some folks would like to see is if the kid can do it or not. You may be right, but you may be wrong. (There is a song in that somewhere). I could take the time to list the other FCS players who have made it in the NFL as starters, but I don't think we need to continue this because it is all guess work from us arm chair quarterbacks.

Somewhere in the mix is Danny Morrison, you guys are letting him slip out of the limelight but I am putting one and one together and coming up with two.

Last year, JR gets rid of his kids and hires Danny Morrison. Now, a year later, he is in the hiding and not in the limelight when he was the only major staff change. Now he comes in and all of a sudden we are ditching experienced players and hiring inexperienced rookies to fit the bill. I say DM has something to do with this mess and all those innuendos by Fox stating that "you'd have to ask the personnel dept" makes me think that DM and Hurney picked the draft picks and Fox was left out of it. They probably knew this was Fox's last year and they didn't want him picking their 2011 and future players since he wouldn't be a part of the action. I have no facts on these assumptions, I am just trying to speak out loud on my thought process.

Danny Morrison is a nice guy who is strictly and solely a "yes man". Panther fans deserve so much better than what has happened to them this season. So do the staff, Coach Fox, and the coaches. It has truly been hard to watch on so many levels.

I agree. It is easy to bash Fox but he has been hung out to dry by this asshole of an owner. WTH? Did JR just say "hey Foxy, not only am I NOT going to extend your contract, I'm going to make damn sure you look like crap going into your next job!" Ha Ha Ha!

The Panthers are so bad there is a kind of fascination to what they're doing, a little like watching a terrible auto accident. You get to ponder questions like wondering if they could beat the Bills -- it would be quite a matchup between two hapless teams. How bad can an NFL team play -- the Panthers are a study in the limits to that question.

The thing all of you crybabies are forgetting is that without Jerry Richardson you would still be a Cowboys, Redskins or Dolphins fan like you were before Jerry Richardson brought the Carolina's their own football team. He doesn't owe you or me jack. His only mistake concerning this season is raising ticket prices for a bad product. What you ladies need to do is buckler your chin strap and check your fanhood and remember that you are a Panthers fan. Things will get better as soon as next year. Once we get a real NFL coaching staff in here again this team will be pretty good again. Just weather the storm and quit whining. Either be a Panthers fan or go back to rooting for whoever it was befoe you liked the Panthers. I think Jerry made some gambles with this team that didn't work out in 2010 but cutting all of that dead weight sets us up nicely for our next coach to have immediate success. I bet there are some coaches that will look at this job as a real opportunity to build something. Things will get better. Just man up and suffer through 2010. That's what real fans do.

Everyone is bashing JR- yes he deserves bashing, and should continue to get bashed as long as he sits quietly ! But Fox-Hurney and Davidson have been terrible for 2-3 yrs now ! We keep giving up draft picks for reach prospects ! We jumped up for A. Edwards and gave up a second round pick ! With the panthers having a top 3 pick nxt yr .....we basically have given up a late first round pick for A. Edwards ! Great Job Hurney !!! I suggest they play both Pike and Claussen in the next 3 games....see who performs best. Then pick one for the final 3-4 games and let them start. Season is trashed- might as well learn what you have !

Hey anonymous dude with all the payroll numbers, do you not realize your salary info is last year's? Seriously...our salary total for this year is like $50m. Last year's salary cap was like 120M, with a minimum of around $72m. With no cap this year, there was actually no minimum either, so that's how JR could drop all the "high priced" players he wanted to.

These idiots need to shut up about short guy Edwards at QB from some small d1aa school. If you wait long enough you can win 4 more games at the end as freebies after the playoffs are named and they protect their starters with their scubs. And Vick aint no QB.

I just have to wonder at all the people blaming Jerry Richardson for John Fox's complete inability to coach an NFL team. Why do you think his contract is up?!

Jerry saw the writing on the wall, but was a nice enough guy to let Foxie play out the contract. That's his only fault. He should have let Fox go this past off-season and brought in a coach who doesn't PLAY SCARED!!!!

Everyone keeps saying we 'went cheap' but I just don't understand your logic (or lack thereof). We assumed we had a solid OL. We knew we had 2 stud RB's and a stud WR. With some utility TE's and FB's we *should* have been able to move the ball (of course play calling shot us in the foot).

On defense we got rid of some players that weren't all star but were taking up good money! What's wrong with that? We didn't know we'd lose TD.

I feel sorry for Jerry, because he truly thought this team could compete and look good, and was LET DOWN but the coaching staff.

Blame the right guy for this debacle. Blame the guy who won't be here and won't be head coaching in the NFL next year. Blame a really nice guy who let the NFL pass him by and didn't try to adjust to it's changes. Blame John Fox.

""This has been a most difficult season in every respect," Richardson says Monday afternoon in his first public comments of the season. "With the way we finished last year, and many of the same players returning, we believed in our opportunity for success. It has not worked out the way anyone hoped and I accept full responsibility.

"I apologize to our fans who have supported us so well. Bringing a championship to the Carolinas has always been our goal and that will continue."

What more do you want, Scott? First, I don't think Jerry Richardson "owes" anybody, anything. It's because of him we have an NFL franchise in the Carolinas. Second, do you really want him meddling in the everyday affairs of the team like some owners?

I bet you like it when other dudes drop the soap in the shower. I also bet you are the kind of dude that likes to peek when standing at the urinal. In case you were wondering you are exactly the kind of fair weather fan that disgusts me.

I have no idea if Armanti's game will translate to the NFL or not, but it's stupid to write somebody off because you think they (or the school they played for in college) is too small. Let him play before you decide. The way I look at it, is there any POSSIBLE way he'll make our offense worse? I don't think so.